Chapter 37

Disclaimer: I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters.

Jakie was asleep by the time the boys arrive home. Troy carefully unbuckled him from the pram and carried him inside. Successfully removing the toddler's jacket Troy breathed a sigh of relief as he tiptoed out of the nursery leaving a still sleeping child in his cot.

Troy made his way downstairs and efficiently started making bolognaise sauce for dinner tonight, making enough for his Aunt and Uncle the following day in case they arrived home too tired or too late to cook for themselves.

His sauce simmering Troy cleaned up the kitchen then move into the lounge to tidy up the toys. When everything was one he called Gabriella.

"HI Troy, is Jakie asleep?" Gabriella asked.

"Hey Gabi" Troy replied.

"Oh no you don't Troy Bolton" Gabriella scolded. "Jakie gets to call me Gabi because he can't say Gabriella. You're just being lazy"

Troy laughed. "Haven't you ever had a nickname?" he asked curiously.

"Not a nice one. Mom calls me Gabi sometimes or Mija, but other than that I've always been Gabriella" she said. "What about you. I know Chad calls you hoops and Troy's really too short already to shorten. Did your parents have a nickname for you?"

"No they never use any name but Troy except Dad who calls me Bolton at school" Troy replied.

"Who gave Jakie his nickname?" Gabriella asked.

"I did. Uncle Steve doesn't like it much and Aunt Debra hates it but it's my name for Jacob and I think he likes it" Troy replied.

Gabriella laughed. "He certainly seems to at the moment" she agreed.

"I've got to go. I think I can hear him waking up" Troy said. "I'll ring you tonight."

"Bye Troy talk to you tonight" Gabriella said.

Troy's heart sank when Jakie woke up asking for his mother.

"Momma Momma" Jakie sobbed.

"Hey Jakie Troy's here buddy" Troy said hugging the little boy and rubbing his back. "Did you have a good sleep?" he asked kissing the baby's forehead.

"Twoy where Momma?" Jakie asked beginning to calm down now someone had come.

"She's having a little vacation Jakie. Momma will be home tomorrow" he said trying to sound cheerful. "You wanna play with Troy?"

"Twoy outsi?" Jakie asked.

"Sure buddy. Lets get you changed then we can go outside" Troy agreed. He changed his nappy and put his jacket and hat on before carrying the little boy carefully downstairs. They we t outside and Troy got out Jakie's ride on and a ball to play with. They played ball for a while then when Jakie started trying to climb the fences Troy put him on his ride on which kept him happy for a while. They played airplane and Jakie squealed with joy being swooped around the large open space until Troy's arms ached and it started to get dark.

"Time to cook dinner" Troy said swooping the child into his arms and hugging him as he walked inside. He set Jakie up banging pots with a wooden spoon while he cooked the pasta and heated some of the sauce for himself. He cut up Jakie's pasta and mixed it with some of the unheated sauce to cool it.

"Do you like spaghetti Jakie?" Troy asked strapping him into his highchair.

"Sketti" Jakie cheered dropping the spoon and shoving both hands into the bowl.

"I guess you do" Troy said smiling. "It's one of my favourite meals too."

Jakie made an unbelievable mess with the spaghetti trying to shove handfuls in his mouth without chewing. "Slow down buddy. There's plenty of time" Troy said laughing. Because he wasn't playing with his food Troy payed attention to eating his own meal and missed the moment the bowl was empty before Jakie upended the bowl on his head.

"Oh no Jakie" Troy complained. "I'm gonna have to wash your hair again. Let's go have a bath buddy." Troy took a quick photo of the grinning child and stripped off his own shirt and jeans before picking up the bolognaise coated toddler and carrying him up to the bathroom. Remembering the kick he'd gotten the night before Troy didn't offer Jakie a choice of a shower but ran the bath. "Do you want bubbles?" he asked.

"Bubboos" Jakie agreed cheerily. "Wots Bubboos"

"Yes Jakie you can have lots of bubbles" Troy said smiling at the filthy little boy.

Jakie giggled and squired as Troy tickled him clean with the face washer. He let Jakie play with the bubbles until the water cooled and then wrapped him in a warm towel and carried him into his room to dress. He set the little boy down in front of the bookshelf. "Pick some books for us to read while I put some clothes on" he said.

Jakie had pulled half the books off the bookshelf by the time he got back. "Oh dear Jakie! We'll have to clean up those books" Troy said starting to restack them in the shelf keeping out a couple he hadn't read in a while. He sat in the rocker with Jakie on his lap and read until the little boy fell asleep. Troy sat there for a while enjoying the peace after their busy day, there is something eminently satisfying about cuddling a sleeping child. Eventually he realised he was starting to dose off and carried Jakie over to the cot tucking him in and kissing his forehead goodnight before going to clean up the bathroom and kitchen.

An hour later he tiredly got ready for bed before remembering his promise to ring Gabriella. He slipped into bed and dialled her number.

"Hey Troy you're late tonight did you have trouble getting Jakie to sleep?" Gabriella asked.

"No but he made a huge mess in the kitchen and bathroom so I had to clean up and do some laundry after he was in bed" Troy explained yawning.

"You sound sleepy are you in bed?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah I nearly read myself to sleep with Jakie earlier" Troy said chuckling. "Don't worry I've got pants on and I'm too tired to suggest anything naughty" he teased.

"Troy Bolton too tired for sexual innuendos? I don't believe it" Gabriella replied smartly.

"I am though" he said, "Maybe not the innuendos but I'm too tired for anything more than that. I don't believe I've been to bed this early on a Saturday night in years, not alone anyway."

"Is looking after Jakie really that much more work than your normal training schedule? Your Dad would be horrified at your lack of endurance" Gabriella teased.

Troy chuckled. "Yeah but he couldn't keep up with Jakie either" he retorted. "It's more the mental alertness having to keep watch and be aware of everything going on around both of us the whole time. I honestly don't know how parents do it full time."

"They can't Troy, but they're familiar with the potential risks in the house and the sounds of a toddler playing safely so they don't need to be as alert every minute as you do" Gabriella replied.

"Yeah I wish I could spend that much time with Jakie to learn that" Troy said wistfully.

"Troy it will come. You do spend a lot of time with him. You interpret his needs amazingly well already" Gabriella said encouragingly.

"He's growing up so quickly. I feel I'm missing things, every time I see him he's changed or can do something he couldn't do before" Troy said.

"At his age he'd change even if you saw him every day. You spend as much time as you can with him Troy. It's enough that he knows you love him and is secure in your care" Gabriella said reassuringly.

Troy felt better and they continued to speak until he began to fall asleep.

"Good night Troy Sweet dreams" Gabriella said quietly.

"Yeah I'm gonna dream of you" Troy replied sleepily.

Gabriella laughed softly and disconnected the call.

-o0o-

The next morning was a copy of the morning before. Jakie woke early and was a little upset not to see his parents but soon settled and ate his cereal and toast. "What should we do today Jakie?" Troy asked as he washed up the breakfast dishes while Jakie sat in the highchair drinking his milk.

"Outsi" Jakie suggested firmly.

"Sure do you want to go to the park or ride your ride on out in the yard?" Troy asked. He bundled the little boy up in his coat and hat and carried him outside putting him down between the ride on and the pram. Jakie turned to the ride on and Troy helped him climb on.

Troy scanned the yard for hazards then let himself relax listening to the sound of the ride on crunching its way across the concrete looking up each time the noise stopped. He looked at the trees and started planning where he would like to build a tree house with Jakie when he was old enough if his Uncle and Aunt would let him. Jakie got bored with the ride on and they played ball and Troy chased Jakie all over the yard swooping him up and tickling him each time he caught him until lunch time. "Time to eat Jakie are you hungry?" Troy asked carrying him in a d strapping him in his highchair. Jakie must have been hungry since he didn't complain about being brought inside ofr a change but drank the water Troy gave him thirstily before attacking his fruit. "Would you like a boiled egg?" Troy asked putting a couple on to cook.

"Edds" Jakie agreed.

"Yes Jakie Eggs and Soldiers" Troy said toasting the bread.

Jakie enjoyed his egg dipping the toast into it like Troy showed him, but made a mess needing the bath they'd managed to avoid after breakfast.

"Okay Jakie Do you want a bath or a shower?" Troy asked carrying him upstairs.

"Bubboos?" Jakie asked.

"Yes you can have a bubble bath" Troy agreed running the taps.

"Bubboo Baff" Jakie said.

Troy stripped Jakie and lifted him in when the water was ready. "Twoy in baff" Jakie demanded.

"Okay" Troy agreed stripping off his clothes leaving his boxers on as always and hoping his aunt and uncle didn't arrive home while he was in the bath with Jakie. The two boys ha fun playing with the bubbles while Troy also washe the egg out of Jakie's hair. They played until Jakie started to look tired and Troy gently lifted him out of the water and dried him off dressing him in his pyjamas quickly and putting the sleepy child to bed. Jakie grizzled for a moment but soon settled and Troy returned to clean up the bathroom before getting dressed and going down to clean up the kitchen. He put on a load of laundry before sitting down to finish his homework. He finished his history then took a break to ring Gabriella.

"Hey Troy, Kelsi's here studying" Gabriella greeted.

"I'm doing homework too but it's not as much fun without you. I'll talk to you later. Say hi to Kelsi for me" Troy said.

"Bye Troy talk to you tonight" Gabriella echoed ending the call. "He said to say hello" she told Kelsi.

Kelsi grinned. "You could have stopped and talked to Troy. What if he'd needed your help?" she said. "I know you must miss him being away all weekend."

"I saw them yesterday and Troy will probably come over when he gets home this afternoon" Gabriella dismissed. "He's fine Jakie's asleep. He was just taking a break from his homework."

"How old is his cousin?" Kelsi asked.

"About sixteen months I think" Gabriella said.

"Oh Wow babies that age are a lot of work. I remember when my little brother was that small I never would have agreed to have him all ay let alone all weekend' Kelsi said surprised.

"Troy copes very well looking after him" Gabriella said. "And one thing you must admit is Troy's never afraid to work hard."

"That's for sure I thought my rehearsal schedule was tough until I saw Troy's when we were practicing for the call-backs" Kelsi said. "Now speaking of work can you check I've done these right?" she asked handing over her math homework. The girls got back to work and finished what they had to do."

Jakie woke up upset again and was more difficult to comfort today. "Momma, Daddy" he sobbed.

"It's okay Jakie, Mommy and Daddy will be home soon" he said cuddling the distressed toddler. When Jakie continued to howl Troy carried him downstairs and tried to distract him. He grabbed the sippy cup he'd filled with juice and the container of raspberries and took them outside to sit on the deck. He sat down with Jakie on his lap and began to sing softly rubbing his hand up and down the toddler's back. Slowly the little boy calmed down and Troy gently wiped his face and nose. "That's better" he said smiling softly at the child now resting comfortably in his arms. "Do you want some berries?"

Jakie stayed cuddled in to Troy while he ate the berries then lay back drinking his milk. Troy sat talking to the child describing plans to do things together once he was a little older. "I'm gonna teach you to shoot a basketball and kick a so for ball and heaps of different sports, and you can pick whichever one you like best" Troy said. "And I'll teach you to ride a bike and we can go camping and build a tree house together. Whatever you want. We're going to have so much fun" he rambled as Jakie cuddled into Troy.

Jakie finished his drink and toddled off. Troy chased him for a while and tried to teach him to kick the ball. They were still outside playing when Troy heard the car pull up in the drive.

"I think Mommy and Daddy are home Jakie" Troy said swinging him up and carrying him into the house to meet the returning adults.

Debra immediately darted over and grabbed her baby. "Oh Jacob Mommy missed you so much" she said covering him with kisses. Steven kissed Jakie too but Debra wasn't willing to share him at the moment so he turned to speak with his nephew.

"How was your weekend?" Steven asked.

"Great! We had a few rough moments when he woke up this afternoon and you still weren't home but he's been very good" Troy said smiling.

"That's good" Steve said. "Grab your stuff and I'll give you a ride home."

Troy came down with his bag and called through to Debra "Bye Aunt Deb I'll see you on Thursday. Bye Jakie" he added kissing the little boys cheek.

"Jakie's coming with us for the ride. Debra wants to get unpacked and get the laundry started" Steve explained. "You know how it is when you've been away."

"I made spaghetti bolognaise last night. There's enough sauce for the three of you in case you got caught up and didn't arrive home until dinner time" Troy said.

"Thank you Troy that's very thoughtful of you" Debra said politely wondering if it was edible.

"Thanks Troy" Steven said more enthusiastically knowing how well his nephew can cook. He headed out and drove Troy home. "Thanks for looking after Jacob this weekend Troy. It was really great to get away together" Steve said.

"You should use more of your date nights to be alone together instead of work dinners all the time" Troy replied.

"Yeah you're right Troy we should" Steve agreed. "But it's easier said than done."

"Yeah you got that right. I spend so much time with Gabriella rehearsing for the musical and doing homework. Dad and my friends don't understand why I need to spend time with her apart from that too" Troy said.

"Do you want me to drop you over there now?" Steve asked.

"No I need to put on a load of washing. Looking after Jakie's a messy job" Troy said laughing.

"That's because you let him do whatever he wants. He doesn't make anywhere near as much mess when he lets me feed him" Steve said laughing too.

"The books say it's good for him to have the opportunity to feed himself" Troy argued.

"You read books on bringing up a toddler?" Steve asked incredulously.

"I want to do the best I can. I don't want to screw him up you know?" Troy said.

"Troy you're a good kid. If your parents haven't managed to screw you up too much what makes you think you could screw up Jakie. Kids are more resilient than you realise" Steve said reassuringly.

"Meeting Gabriella sorted me out. I was pretty screwed up without her" Troy admitted.

Steve sighed. "I'm sorry for my part in that Troy. You can always come to me when things get too tough at home. I shouldn't have lost sight of the relationship we used to have."

"It's okay I understand" Troy said. He and Steve had once been very close with Steven looking after him and standing up to his father when he was being unreasonable. Before Steve had met Debra Troy had spent almost every other Sunday with his uncle. Getting married and then having Jakie had changed that and Steve regretted how much he had let his nephew down.

A/N: Thank you to Pumpkinking5, stordec23, Ceciliaa93, Fourtris Troyella Shippers, Thereadella and EfronKingdom for your support.